Lewis Hamilton admits he was taken aback by the margin by which he claimed his 67th career pole at the British Grand Prix, moving to within one of the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.

The local favourite smashed the lap record around the current Silverstone layout with a 1:26.600s in qualifying, over half a second clear of the two Ferraris. It was the Mercedes driver's sixth pole of the season and fifth at his home race, tieing the record with Jim Clark.

Hamilton has been the man to beat all weekend, looking very comfortable despite only leading one of the three practice sessions, however, speaking afterwards even Hamilton did not expect this gap to his competitors.

"I feel amazing especially with a great crowd like this," he said summing up his emotions on the grid. "I always try to save the best for last and knowing how much support I have here I had to get that lap.

"The final lap felt fantastic. Of course, I didn't expect to get a gap like that, but that's always the target. It definitely felt great and I'm very proud." 

While some struggled with the drying conditions throughout, experience proved key to the man from Stevenage around a venue where three of his four wins have seen rain at some stage.

"I generally like it to be dry but these typical English conditions, this is where I grew up racing,” he said.

"So I felt very comfortable in it and the team did a fantastic job. When it dried up, that high-speed section was incredible."

Though a tough fight with the Ferraris likely awaits in the race, few would bet against another Silverstone success on Sunday for Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton closed to within one of Michael Schumacher's record for most pole positions after claiming the top spot by over half a second at the British Grand Prix.

The home favourite set an incredible 1:26.600s on his final effort and survived an investigation after possibly impeding Romain Grosjean during Q3 to match the record of five poles at Silverstone. Kimi Raikkonen claimed second after beating teammate Sebastian Vettel, who was unhappy with traffic at the start of his final run.

Valtteri Bottas finished fourth but will start ninth after the five-place grid penalty he received on Friday for changing his gearbox. The Finn matched what Hamilton did at the last race in Austria by opting to use the soft tyres in Q2 giving him a different strategy compared to the other top 10 drivers.

Bottas’ position will be inherited by Max Verstappen who now starts fourth but the bad luck at Red Bull this time hit team-mate Daniel Ricciardo, who was quickest initially in the damp conditions in Q1 but would suffer a turbo failure, causing him to pull off the track and will, therefore, start at the back of the grid.

That allowed Nico Hulkenberg up to fifth for Renault, as the German showed outstanding pace throughout the session. As expected the Force Indias moved up when the action got serious with Sergio Perez ahead of teammate Esteban Ocon in sixth and seventh.

Stoffel Vandoorne took his McLaren to a deserved eighth position, out-qualifying Fernando Alonso for the first time this year, then will come Bottas with Grosjean completing the top 10.

As track conditions improved during Q2, Jolyon Palmer was unfortunate to just miss out in 11th at his home race, he will be followed by the Toro Rosso of Daniil Kvyat in 12th.

Fernando Alonso finished the session 13th but will be forced to drop to the back of the grid with a 30-place penalty, that promotes Carlos Sainz, who had a suspension problem at the beginning of Q2.

Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll had a disappointing Saturday for the second straight weekend as problems optimising their upgrades persist. The Brazilian was 14th with the Canadian rookie struggling to 15th with little experience of an F1 car in the wet.

Another disappointment would be for Kevin Magnussen in 16th for Haas, as Pascal Wehrlein out-qualified teammate Marcus Ericsson to finish 17th and 18th respectively with Alonso and Ricciardo completing the grid for Sunday.

It would be interesting to see the comeback Bottas and Ricciardo will try to make during the race. With the top teams close on the long runs an exciting race is promised on Sunday.

Qualifying Result:

Sebastian Vettel acknowledged Lewis Hamilton was too quick for Ferrari in qualifying, as the Briton took pole by over half a second at the British Grand Prix.

The German was expected to be the nearest challenger to his main title rival after showing good pace in final practice and the penalty for Valtteri Bottas. However, a poor final run meant he had to settle for third place after being beaten by his teammate Kimi Raikkonen.

The only consolation for Ferrari was they were both able to split the Mercedes, but the championship leader was still left amazed with the lap Hamilton was able to get.

When asked if he could have matched Hamilton's 1:26.600s, Vettel responded: "No. I think the time he put in at the end was very strong.

"The one he put in before we were able to beat, the gap at the end was a bit bigger. I think he owned the pole position today."

Raikkonen was also surprised with Hamilton's pace but the former world champion remained positive and has a good belief in his car.

"I think we have a good car, not fast enough [for pole], but for the race hopefully we can challenge [Mercedes] and have a good run," the 2007 world champion said.

“The last run I was a bit compromised, in the first sector especially, because tyres were not where they should have been.”

After the qualifying, Vettel was heard on the radio outraged, talking about the incident he said: "They could have been better on the out-lap but I was in traffic, we were in a bunch of three-four cars. But anyway it is a decent result.

"Most important is that the car is good, we improved it today and tomorrow should be better.

"We have always been closer on Sundays, so sitting here, having expectations, the answer [to if we can think we can be competitive] is always yes, but we'll see tomorrow."

Lewis Hamilton kept Mercedes on top to sweep all three free practices at the British Grand Prix as Sebastian Vettel ended the defending world champions domination by finishing second ahead of Valtteri Bottas in a calm FP3.

The British driver posted a 1:28.063s on the supersoft tyres but Vettel put the pressure on by going quicker in the first two sectors before setting a time only 0.032s adrift of his championship rival.

Bottas, who was on top Friday, was only able to finish third and will drop five places due to a gearbox change after qualifying but the top three was over six tenths ahead of the second Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen in fourth.

Meaningful running was curtailed early with rain arriving around the circuit, most drivers did venture out for a run on the intermediates with several, including Daniel Ricciardo, who it was confirmed before the session will take his own five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change, and Marcus Ericsson spinning in the damp conditions.

That meant the midfield order was a little mixed up as the initial dry track became damp. It allowed Nico Hulkenberg to finish a surprising fifth for Renault ahead of Ricciardo, who as likely heavily fueled in his Red Bull.

Romain Grosjean kept his good form after the Austrian Grand Prix bringing his Haas seventh, Max Verstappen missed out on a super-soft tyre run as he went out just as the rain arrived and was therefore eighth with Felipe Massa and Stoffel Vandoorne, despite a loss of power midway through in his McLaren, completing the top 10.

Fernando Alonso finished 11th in the second MCL32, though it was also confirmed the Spaniard will start from the back of the grid due to engine penalties. Esteban Ocon came in 12th with teammate Sergio Perez only 15th as Force India continue to take it easy.They were split by Kevin Magnussen and Jolyon Palmer, who had engine vibrations at one point and was nine-tenths slower than his teammate in 14th.

Toro Rosso is also on the back foot at Silverstone with Daniil Kvyat 16th and Carlos Sainz 17th, far from their regular spots this season. Pascal Wehrlein finished ahead of teammate Marcus Ericsson coming 18th and 19th.

Finally, Lance Stroll did not enjoy a good session finishing 20th for Williams, as the team try to find the best setup with the new updates introduced for this weekend.

With the gap between the Mercedes and Ferrari reduced, Hulkenberg leading the battle of the rest and rain never far away, a promising qualifying session awaits.

Daniel Ricciardo was left disappointed but targets a Baku-style come back after a suspected turbocharger failure left him at the back of the grid for the British Grand Prix.

The Australian had a positive start, setting the best time on his first run in a wet Q1 but that was cut short when the engine failed and whirring noises indicated a turbo problem. He tried to make it to the pits, but his car was only able to make it to the old pit straight before stopping and causing a red flag.

His subsequent early exit, though typical of the recent reliability issues that have affected his teammate, signals the first time the Red Bull driver has not made Q3 in qualifying since the Italian Grand Prix in 2015.

“It isn’t sure yet, but it’s suspected,” Ricciardo said when asked if a turbo issue had been confirmed. “It sounded a little bit sick, that was the first thing. I lost a bit of power and then I heard some weird turbo noises.”

“I thought I could make it back to the pits but then everything went off. Definitely a big failure of some sort and we couldn’t stay for the session, so disappointing.”

The recent winner in Azerbaijan, who was 17th at one stage in that race, remains positive and hopes to overturn the fortunes by getting it right when it counts.

 “We know these conditions could’ve given us a bit more opportunity. We were quick at the beginning there,” he said of the early rain.

“Obviously tomorrow is another day, I’m just disappointed not to have shown more of what we could do in qualifying. But yeah, tomorrow is where the points are. We have some work ahead of us to get back into them but until we can it is what it is.”

The Australian was already due to serve a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change but with the current position, he is set to start from the last row joining Fernando Alonso.

It is likely Red Bull will also now fit other new engine parts in an effort to avoid future penalties.

“Yes, that is something we will look at because we already start at the back, whether it is 19th or 20th, I can give Fernando a position if he wants it,” the 28-year-old joked.

“It just means that he has to be the first person to take a victim out for me but maybe we will try and see if we can make the most of this penalty and fit on some new parts. We will see what happens but I know that the guys will assess everything now.”

Williams was forced the team to change their Friday practice plans at Silverstone after Felipe Massa and Lance Stroll damaged their new parts on a kerb exiting Copse.

Both drivers were exploring the limits of the racetrack in Practice 1 in the morning but in doing so would, in the case of the Brazilian, cause a new winglet above the bargeboard to fall off and shatter, while the Canadian broke the floor of his car on an aggressive outer kerbs designed to deter drivers from exceeding track limits at the famous high-speed right hander.

The new elements were part of the updates introduced in Austria last weekend that Williams has struggled to optimise when running out on track, but, with better outcomes being observed, that work was ended due to a lack of each new part.

"We should go back to the new ones tomorrow, hopefully," Massa explained later

"It was good, it was not really like in Austria," the 36-year-old added.  "Everything was quite normal to warm up the tyres, I did my best lap on the first lap on the tyres without any problem. That's definitely positive.

"The long run feels OK, so everything really went in a good direction, like we had before Austria."

It was an eventful day for Massa, as he would spin at Becketts in the afternoon and was investigated but later cleared of holding up Max Verstappen, as the two had a mini fight through Vale and Club corners.

"I had a lot of traffic in the front, so that's what I backed off," he said. "If he was on his timed lap I would not do that definitely."

As for Stroll, he had a positive feedback too as he eased his way into his first F1 weekend at one of its most difficult tracks. The Canadian would finish the second session 15th but enjoyed the feel of his car around Silverstone.

“[There are] a few things to improve on my side but the car feels more competitive than Austria, which is positive," he claimed.

Romain Grosjean suggested Lewis Hamilton's position as Formula 1 title contender played a role in the stewards' decision not to penalise the Mercedes driver after qualifying at Silverstone.

Though the Briton stormed to a sensational fifth pole position at his home race on Saturday, a cloud matching those over the circuit hung over the result, as Hamilton would be investigated for potentially impeding the Frenchman as he approached the final corners during Q3.

Later it would be confirmed that no further action would be taken, however, the 30-year-old insists did cost him up he lost time and was perplexed by how the stewards explained their decision.

"Yes. Surprised by the wording," the Haas man replied when asked about the ruling. "'Driver behind has not been impeded'. If losing 0.3 to 0.4s in one corner is not being impeded I'm very surprised.

"I think it opens room for a mess in qualifying and the rules are pretty clear. I know that there is a world title going on at the front but we are in a position where we actually fight as hard as the boys at the front and I was impeded today.

"Maybe if it was another driver the sanction would have been something and it does feel sometimes like there are two types of decisions.

"If next time I have to get my front wing in his rear diffuser to show that I have been impeded…,” he added frustratingly. "We've got very clear rules in qualifying and with 10 cars on track in Q3 we should not have those problems." 

Hamilton would defend himself prior to the stewards call, saying: “I was coming around to start my lap, Valtteri was up ahead and behind me, there was a Force India then he came into the pits so no-one was behind me.

"Literally as I was about to get on the gas I looked in the mirror and there was a car coming. If I got in the way I apologise and I had no indication from the team that there was anyone coming."

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, however, was furious with Grosjean's complaints telling reporters: “There are some that moan all the time, they just continue moaning. I don’t want to even comment.

“If Romain Grosjean comes out and starts asking for penalties for other drivers, you should rather look at his track record. He should be happy he is driving in F1.”

Sebastian Vettel revealed he was feeling "dizzy" after using the new 'Shield' cockpit protection for just one lap in practice at the British Grand Prix.

The German gave the canopy-shaped windshield its public debut on Friday, as part of a plan by motorsport's governing body, the FIA, to incorporate it onto the cars next season.

However, despite being more aesthetically pleasing than the previously tested 'Halo', immediate problems Vettel had with the concept led to a further run being cancelled.

"I tried it this morning, I got a bit dizzy... The forward vision is not very good," he said.

"I think it's because of the curvature, you get quite a bit of distortion, plus you get quite a bit of downwash down the straight pushing the helmet forward.

"We had another run planned with it, but I didn't like it, so we took it off."

Vettel also added that the 'Shield' would affect the ability to get in and out of the car, especially in the case of danger and immediate need of leaving the car.

“For sure it doesn’t help. I think that getting in, getting out - obviously getting in doesn’t matter - but getting out is probably more about getting used to it so that’s not the main thing I think,” he said.

Also, Ferrari has brought a new, updated engine just for Vettel at Silverstone.

Asked if he expects some improvement in his battle with Mercedes, the 30-year-old replied: “It should. Obviously, it’s always a bit in a plan, it’s on target."

As for the team's potential this weekend, he added: “I don’t know, today was a bit mixed, for us a bit up and down. I haven’t seen much yet but it’s fun to drive around here!”

Fernando Alonso is hoping for mixed conditions at the British Grand Prix on Sunday, as a 30-place grid penalty means the McLaren-Honda driver will start on the back row.

The Spaniard produced a moment to savour for the fans at Silverstone in qualifying as, at the bottom of the timesheets late in Q1, he made a courageous decision to go for slicks while all drivers were using intermediates on the damp track. Crossing the line just fractions before the chequered flag fell, the gamble paid off as Alonso grabbed the top spot in Q1 leading to the crowds to cheer the 35-year-old as if he grabbed a win.

"I saw them on the in lap, the people on the grandstands [getting] excited," he said about the reaction later.

"It was only Q1, on dry tyres, but people need to see McLaren back on the top sometime.

"I'm happy for them, happy for the team as well, they do some extra work changing a little bit too many engines, but to see a McLaren top, even in Q1, is a nice thing."

Ultimately the session ended with Fernando 13th overall, four places behind team-mate Stoffel Vandoorne and, with his penalty, the double world champion will drop to the back of the grid but that doesn’t make him lose hope, believing a similar opportunity could come around in the race.

"We saw with mixed conditions we can be fast and we can take extra risks as we are not in the points from the starting position," he commented.

"If it's mixed, [points] are possible, if it's dry, it's going to be challenging to follow the cars in the high-speed corners, and also [due to] the lack of speed on the straights."

As for Vandoorne, Silverstone marked the first time he has out-qualified his teammate this season with the Belgian now lining up eighth on the grid for the race after benefiting from Valtteri Bottas' penalty.

“To take part in Q3 at Silverstone was a bit unexpected,” the former GP2 champion admitted. "But I’ve been working very well for the past couple of races, and we’ve clearly seen the improvements inside the team – in Azerbaijan, in Austria, and here at Silverstone this weekend, Fernando and I largely matched each other’s pace. It’s obviously a pretty good feeling to have made that extra step.

“We’d been hoping to get a rainy mixed-condition qualifying for a long time and I think we were pretty strong in these conditions all session long," he added. "Then, when the track got drier, we maximised every chance we got.

“As usual, it’s very close in the midfield pack, and we usually see that some of the others have got a little something extra for qualifying. But I think the mixed conditions really helped us today. Every time I was on track, I managed to bank a good lap-time, and I think ninth in Q3 was really the maximum we could do today.”

For the second race in a row, a Mercedes will take a five-place grid penalty drop due to a gearbox change, with Valtteri Bottas this time hitting trouble at the British Grand Prix.

The Finn had led both of Friday's practice sessions at Silverstone before news of the penalty broke but now the winner at the Red Bull Ring last weekend will face the same task as his team-mate Lewis Hamilton did exactly one week ago.

“I can confirm that Valtteri will be taking a new gearbox this weekend and therefore incur a five-place grid penalty,” a spokesman for the team announced.

“His gearbox was damaged in the same way as Lewis’ but less severely, and we had hoped to coax it to the end of the cycle. However, we have not been able to do so.

“The cause of the damage is understood and now behind us, just as for Lewis’ problem.”

As a result, Hamilton, who has actually looked quicker than Bottas in practice before an error on his qualifying simulation, is now the clear favourite to make it four successive wins at his home race.

Speaking immediately after the session, Valtteri also admitted that despite taking the top spot, he still wasn't totally comfortable with his car.

“We've started the weekend really well. In the first session, the balance was not too far away, so a positive start,” he said initially.

“There is still work to do to get the car more driveable and to be able to trust it more in the high-speed corners but overall I think it was a good start for the weekend.

“We just need to work as normal, try and make improvements for tomorrow.”

The former GP3 champion also acknowledged the increased physical challenge of the 2017 car around the sweeping bends of Silverstone.

“I'm impressed by the new cars on this track with its high-speed corners - they're so much quicker than before,” he said. “I'm definitely enjoying it and had a lot of fun, so I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

“You feel more G in the corners and there's a greater effect on your body, quite a big step up from last year but luckily I'm well prepared for that,” Bottas added.